Developmental Psychopathology and the Gene-environment Interaction

NCT ID: NCT04489069

Last Updated: 2024-03-21

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 40 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2019-01-16
• Study Completion Date: 2023-12-31

Brief Summary

The present is a followup study that aims at investigating the effect of genetic and environmental factors on the possible development of psychopathological conditions in a longitudinal perspective.

The final goal is to understand those factors that causing vulnerability to mental illness, eventually allowing better prevention and early detections of those persons with mental illness.

Detailed Description

The developmental psychopathology aims at studying the possible paths that psychiatric conditions may take from childhood, through adolescence till early adulthood. This developmental perspective has the final goal of allowing prevention and early detection of mental illness, which in turn should translate into better prognosis and outcomes.

Longitudinal research allows a better grasp on the illness etiology as it gives the opportunity of directly investigate the possible causal mechanisms and of defining the origins of psychopathological condition in adults.

Many factors of risk interact, across neurodevelopment, in determining the person's vulnerability to mental illness. For instance, temperament and psychopathological factors were proved to have a role. However, the existing knowledge is still fragmented and should be integrated by new knowledge on genetic and environmental factors. Thus, combining observations of neurodevelopment, as measured with neuro-imaging techniques at subsequent timepoints, with psychopathological and neuropsychological evaluations, as well as with detailed information on genetic, environmental and temperamental indexes, is crucial, as no similar exhaustive investigations are still available.

Furthermore, it must be bared in mind that the gene by environment interaction generates complex epigenetic effects on neurodevelopment, which should be monitored through a longer time lapse.

This topic has been studying this topic for years, by research groups with sites in Friuli Venezia Giulia and Bosisio Parini (Lecco, Lombardia), by mean of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, involving samples of children and adolescents at risk of psychopathology and referred because of behavioral and/or emotional difficulties, experienced in the past or still ongoing. Also, the research involved a cohort of Twins recruited from the normal population and whose data would allow more fine tuned analyses of the bene by environment interaction.

In those first phases of study, instruments assessing the psychopathological risk were adapted to the Italian population and the associated cognitive marker were identified.

Also, some analysis investigated the effect of the environment on the psychopathological risk. Moreover, the influence of genetic factors is under now study, mainly focussing on epigenetic factors.

The research that is presented here is the followup of the previous investigations. In the previous year (2019) 33 participants underwent the follow up from the sample of children at psychopathological risk and who were chidden/adolescents at the time of the baseline evaluation.

During the current year the Twins cohort will be followed up. Half or more of the participants tested ad the baseline are expected to participate, which correspond to about 30 couples (60 participants). The subjects will undergo i) a magnetic resonance, including structural MRI, DTI, resting state fMRI, fMRI (during the fMRI sequences a concurrent task, tapping attention and emotional processes, is presented); ii) a psychopathological evaluation; iii) a self-rating evaluation, filling questionnaires measuring temperaments and assessing the possible presence of behavioral problems; iv) a neurocognitive evaluation; v) a drawing of biological-genetic sample (saliva).

Conditions

Developmental Psychological Disorder

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: OTHER
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Clinical, neuropsychological and MRI evaluations

Group Type: OTHER

MRI

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (sturctural MRI, fMRI resting state and task related, DTI)

Clinical and Neuropsychological evaluations

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Clinical interviews and neuropsychological tests (paper/pencil and computer based)

Drawing DNA sample

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Saliva sample

Interventions

MRI

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (sturctural MRI, fMRI resting state and task related, DTI)

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Clinical and Neuropsychological evaluations

Clinical interviews and neuropsychological tests (paper/pencil and computer based)

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Drawing DNA sample

Saliva sample

Intervention Type: DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• participants who already took part to the previous baseline evaluations carried out in our centers and signed consent to be contacted for future follow up

Exclusion Criteria

• Current or previous neurological illness or trauma that involved the brain.
• Sensory impairments that can hamper the correct execution of the neurocognitive tasks and interviews.
• Intellectual disability (i.e. IQ<70 as estimated with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale or the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children)

• Minimum Eligible Age: 15 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 35 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

IRCCS Eugenio Medea

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Carolina Bonivento, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

IRCCS E.Medea

Locations

IRCCS E.Medea

San Vito al Tagliamento, Pordenone, Italy

Countries

Italy

Other Identifiers

212/2019-VERSIONE2

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id